Homemade Clotted Cream
Clotted Cream is deliciously creamy and the essential companion to a batch of British scones. You don't have to go to England to enjoy your tea-time treats though, because it is so easy to make at home!
What is clotted cream?
Clotted cream is a staple on British tea-time tables. You'll find it served in a little dish right alongside your scones (or very traditionally, Cornish 'splits', a type of yeast bun).
It is a thick, creamy, white spread, with the consistency of softened cream cheese. It is ever so slightly sweet, but mostly just incredibly creamy. Like a good, unsalted butter.
But so much more.
Devonshire cream vs clotted cream
Sometimes you may hear "clotted cream" called "Devonshire cream" or "Cornish cream". It really all depends on the region you are in.
The making of clotted cream started in Devon as a way to separate the fat from milk to make butter. Centuries later in Cornwall, it became popular to use the cream on its own. At that time, clotted cream and butter were the most popular ways to preserve milk.
One of our readers sent us a wonderful insight into clotted cream making, that is worth sharing. Angela spent her childhood during WWII at Callington with her grandparents who were retired farmers on the Devon/Cornwall border. She explained that the real difference between clotted cream in Devon and Cornwall came down to the process.
She stated,
"Devon cream was made by putting the full milk straight from the cow into a large enamel pan. It was then rested overnight to allow the fat to rise to the top. Then the pan was placed on the range over a pan of simmering water until the cream became a crust. (The milk must not boil!) It was then removed and allowed to become cold in the pantry - no fridges then.
When cold, the thick crust was carefully scooped off the top of the milk and put in a cream dish ready for use. The remaining fatless milk was used for cooking and on farms, surplus skim milk was used to feed pigs etc.
This was the method we used as we no longer had the farm. Just 2 bottles of unpasteurized full cream milk produced enough cream for splits, stewed fruit or junket.
Cornish clotted cream was made as follows - The full milk was poured through a separator. This was a rather complicated piece of mechanical equipment used on farms to separate the fat from the milk.
The full cream was then put into the enamel pan and very slowly heated on the stove until it thickened from top to bottom. No skimming needed. When cold, it could all be eaten!
This is what can be bought in supermarkets today."
Many thanks to Angela for sharing her knowledge and family heritage story with us!
Of course, those in Devon and Cornwall each claim that their cream is superior.
I guess we'll have to take a trip to decide for ourselves!
Ingredients
The ingredient list here couldn't be any shorter. You just need to get yourself some heavy cream.
However, the hardest part about making clotted cream might just be finding the cream.
You see, for best results, you need to start with heavy cream that has not been ultra-pasteurized for a longer shelf life.
Simply look for a carton of heavy cream that does not say "ultra-pasteurized", and you're good to go!
Can I use ultra pasteurized cream?
Finding non-ultra-pasteurized cream is becoming more and more difficult in the States, so many of our readers have asked if they can use ultra-pasteurized cream in this recipe.
Luckily, the answer is yes (most of the time). Some of our readers have had luck using ultra-pasteurized cream. However, because of what the ultra-pasteurization process does to the protein and fat molecules in the cream, you will get less clotted cream if you start with ultra-pasteurized cream than if you can find some that isn't.
How to make clotted cream
Clotted describes the look of the cream when it is heated ever-so-gently so that the fat separates to the top and clings together.
After you find your cream, the second hardest part of making clotted cream is the wait.
This is not a quick process.
The cream has to be heated slowly for 12 hours, which we find easiest to do overnight. Then it is cooled for another 8 hours (or over the next night).
Finally, you separate the cream from the liquid, and you have the spread that you have been waiting for.
It might take a long time, but it's mostly hands-off.
And it's SO worth the wait!
Can you make clotted cream in the slow cooker?
This is a question that we get often from our readers, so we did some testing to find out.
The answer is yes you can! Have a look at our recipe and process for making clotted cream in the slow cooker.
There are also some nice tips and tricks about making clotted cream in general over there, so even if you're thinking about making it using this oven method, take a look over there for the tips!
How to store the finished product
You will want to store your clotted cream in an airtight container in your refrigerator. For best storage, store it a place in your fridge that stays a consistent, cool temperature - so not in the door. Closer to the middle is where we like to keep it.
How long does homemade clotted cream last?
Your homemade clotted cream will stay fresh for about 3-4 days if properly stored in the refrigerator. After that, it may start to lose its consistency.
However, if you happen to let your clotted cream get just a bit past its prime and the texture just isn't quite right you can always use it to make fudge or ice cream.
How to use clotted cream
The traditional use for clotted cream is on scones, with jam, served with tea.
However, if you find yourself with an excess of clotted cream and no scones, you can always serve it with Irish soda bread, muffins, apple pie, a fruit tart, or any dessert or sweet bread of your choosing. It also makes a nice fruit topping.
Basically, you can use it any way you would typically use whipped cream or butter.
Savory uses for clotted cream
Clotted cream typically lends itself to sweeter uses: spread on scones (or "splits" as Angela pointed out to us were more common where she was growing up) with some jam.
However, it is rich and creamy and you can use it for savory applications as well.
We think it would be delicious as a veggie dip or spread on a cucumber slice as an appetizer.
You could also add it to mashed potatoes, risotto, or eggs to give them extra creaminess, much like you would butter. Or you could add it to soups or sauces to give them a creamy boost.
What's the difference between clotted cream and whipped cream?
While at first, a bowl of clotted cream might look similar to whipped cream. But once you take a taste, you'll know the difference.
Both start with the same basic ingredient: heavy cream. But, for whipped cream, you whip that cream into light and fluffy pillows. Often you'll add sweetener and possibly a flavoring, like vanilla, to whipped cream as well.
Clotted cream, on the other hand, is heated and separated, as we'll go into more detail below. This process produces a thicker, creamy substance.
Another difference is that clotted cream is typically not sweetened. People love it for the creamy texture it adds, similar to butter, rather than a particular sweetness or flavor.
What's the difference between clotted cream and butter?
So, if it has a thicker consistency and is more savory, how is clotted cream different from butter?
Again, it comes down to the process.
Butter is made by churning (or whipping) cream. So, if you over-whip your whipped cream, you'll end up with nice, whipped butter.
Clotted cream, again, has to do with the separation of the fat in your cream.
Our reader Angela pointed out to us that the making of butter in a churn took additional time and hard work. So making clotted cream was a much easier option.
What to do with the leftover whey from making clotted cream?
When you make clotted cream, you will be left with a thin, milky liquid below the clotted cream.
That liquid is basically skim milk, and while we don't think it has the best flavor for drinking, it is perfectly good for baking.
You can use it in any baking recipe that calls for milk. Our favorite way to use it is to make a batch of British scones.
However, it would also work well to make this Brazilian French toast or this Finnish braided bread.
Can you freeze clotted cream?
Frozen dairy tends to lose its thickness and creamy texture, so we wouldn't recommend freezing homemade clotted cream. (We'd use it in some of the ways suggested above first.)
That being said, we have heard of some people having luck freezing clotted cream in an airtight container, if it is thawed overnight in the refrigerator before you would like to use it.
If you'd like to try this, we'd suggest starting with a small test batch to see how you like the results.
Buying jars of imported clotted cream can get quite pricey. But you don't have to worry about that anymore!
Homemade Clotted Cream
To make clotted cream, you will want to start the process 3 days before you plan to serve your cream. It sounds like a lot of time, but most of the process is done while you sleep!
Ingredients
- 2 c (237 ml) heavy cream, (not ultra-pasteurized)
Instructions
Day 1
- Preheat your oven to 170-180F.
- Pour the cream into a shallow casserole dish or glass baking dish. (The cream should only come up the sides about 1-2 inches. The key here is to have a lot of surface area.)
- Place the cream in the oven for 12 hours, uncovered. (This works great overnight.**)
Day 2
- After heating for 12 hours, the cream will develop a skin. Carefully remove the dish from the oven and let it cool to room temperature. Once cool, cover the dish and refrigerate it for 8 hours (or overnight again).
Day 3
- After chilled, gently skim the thick layer of clotted cream from the surface, leaving the thinner liquid behind. (It will feel like you’re pulling a layer of slightly softened ice cream from the top of a layer of milk*. The skin in fine, it will soften as it is mixed into the cream.)
- Gently stir the skimmed clotted cream to create a smooth texture. (If your cream is too thick for your liking, you can always stir a little bit of the thin liquid back into your cream, until it reaches your desired consistency.)
- Store the clotted cream in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. (Clotted cream can also be frozen and thawed in the refrigerator, if desired.)
Notes
*The leftover liquid can be used like milk. It’s great for baking!
** Oven note #1: Some ovens have a safety feature that shuts them off after extended periods of time. If this is your oven, you may want to do the clotting step during the day, when you can make sure your oven stays on and at a low temperature.
Oven note #2: We have a lot of readers who are discovering as they try this recipe that their oven runs hot. After 12 hours in the oven, their cream has developed a dark brown skin. The skin on your cream should only be a pale tan if it starts to darken. If you think your oven may run hot, check your cream after 8 hours and again after 10 hours to see if the top is darkening. If it is, you may need to cycle your oven between off and on to keep a temperature that is not too hot for the cream. (As a side note, the darkened top on the cream does not mean it is ruined. It simply means your finished cream will have a bit of a deeper flavor, and it will most likely have some flecks of brown and not be a pure creamy white.)
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
16Serving Size:
1 gAmount Per Serving: Calories: 101
Sarah founded Curious in 2010 as a way to save her recipe creations and share culinary experiences. Her love for cultural cuisines was instilled early by her French Canadian Grandmother. Her experience in the kitchen and in recipe development comes from over 10 years working in professional kitchens. She has traveled extensively and enjoys bringing the flavors of her travels back to create easy-to-make recipes.
Once mixed is it supposed to be lumpy?
You may have a few little lumps in the clotted cream, but if you stir it enough you can typically smooth most of the lumps out.
Yes, the lumps are ‘clots’ hence the name ‘clotted cream’
Does the clotted cream freeze well?
We've never tried to freeze our clotted cream. However, typically when we freeze thick, higher fat, dairy products they get a bit grainy when they thaw, so I wouldn't think freezing would be the best for the clotted cream.
Hi, I just wanted to say that I have made this recipe and did freeze some that we couldn’t eat within a week. It didn’t seem to affect the texture or taste at all.
Thank you so much for commenting on this Grace! It is very good to know!
I just finished skimming my clotted cream and it is perfect! I needed my oven so I transferred the dish to my portable roasting oven about halfway through the process. Thanks!
So glad you enjoyed it!
It came out amazing!! I was over thinking it. I did one with whipping cream that was batch pasteurized and one with heavy whipping cream that is pasteurized, but not ultra. They both were perfect!!
Just FYI for first timers, when you take out of oven it won’t be solid per say. Still milky with a film over top (some holes in the film too)Just keep true to all the directions and you’ll be pleasantly surprised.
Thanks so much for this!!! I’m ready for my tea party now.
Thanks so much for letting us know how it turned out for you! What a great experiment. And, and it's good to know that both work well! Happy tea party!
Ok so... which is better to use....
whipping cream that is batch pasteurized?
OR
Heavy whipping cream that is pasteurized?
Neither are ultra pasteautized
Hi Ashley, Either would work.
Heavy whipping cream (heavy cream) is around 36% milk fat, and whipping cream is 30% milk fat. Since we're looking for the higher fat content here, the heavy whipping cream would be best.
Batch pasteurized typically gets the milk to around 149F, while typical pasteurization gets the milk to 161F. (UHT or ultra-pasteurized brings it up to 280F.) So, in this case batch pasteurized would be preferable, because of the lower temperature.
As you can see, both of your options have their pros and cons. If I had to pick between your options, I'd go with the heavy whipping cream because of the fat content. But, really, either should work well.
If you feel inclined to try both as an experiment, do let us know which turns out better for you! We'd be very interested to hear!
Hello! I am hoping to make this this weekend. Would whipping cream work? And batch pasteurized is ok? Just not ultrapasteurized correct?
Hi Ashley. Heavy whipping cream will work well. Batch pasteurized should be fine, as long as it's not ultra-pasteurized. Enjoy!
What happens if your heavy cream is ultra pasteurized? I have a half gallon of it I need to use up!
Hi Anne. Ultra pasteurized cream won't separate the way it needs to in order to make clotted cream. You could try it (since you seem to have plenty to use), but your yield would probably be much less, if any at all. Maybe try using it to make ice cream, quiche, or French baked custards!
Hi I just made the cream but it burnt that temperature is quite high at 180. Is that correct and it has only been in for 5 hours
Hi Sally. Do you have a thermometer in your oven? It is possible that your oven is not calibrated correctly. Clotted cream does need to be made at a low temperature, so if your oven is running hot, that would cause some issues.
What is the leftover "milky liquid?" Is it nonfat milk? I'm wondering if I could make yogurt with it.
Hi Barry, It is kind of like a nonfat milk. You can use it like milk in baking, however since there is really no fat in it it wouldn't give you the best results for yogurt.
We just returned from England, and I'm already missing clotted cream with scones! I have a great scone recipe but have never tried making clotted cream, and was delighted to find your instructions. Out of curiosity, have you (or anyone you know) ever tried it in a crock pot as opposed to the oven?
Hi Caroline. We haven't tried this in the slow cooker. But, that's an experiment I think we need to try!
Caroline, could you please share your great scone recipe? elainestrohmier@hotmail.com
Hi Caroline. We have now tested this in the slow cooker, check out our article for making clotted cream in the slow cooker.
Just made this and put it on scones today, delish! The only issue we had is that I think I used too large of a pan so the cream was in a bit too thin of a layer(still worked was just not super easy to separate) and we learned our oven has a safety feature that automatically turns off the oven after 10 hours.
Glad you're enjoying it Ashley! That's a nice feature for the oven... until you want to make clotted cream! 🙂
I will just have to make sure I turn off and back on right before bed next time.
I just made this last nite and unfortunately was unsuccessful. The top had a thick golden brown crusty layer, almost like a dried caramel crust. The bottom underneath was completely liquified with a separation of fat from the cream at top. I’d say this looks overdone. It was in the oven overnight. Before I went to bed (approx. 2 hours in), I took a peek with the oven light on... and it already looked like clotted cream. It was thick, raised and very little liquid... would it take that quick to make clotted cream? I used a shallow glass baking dish, approx. 1 inch cream deep and the oven was on my lowest setting... 170 degrees. Should I have taken it out after 2 hours? Or what went wrong? I used organic heavy cream, pasteurized from Trader’s Joe. I was going to make the clotted cream 3 days ago but had already poured only 1 pint of the heavy cream in the glass casserole dish and realized that was only half the amount of the recipe. So I left that in the baking dish for a few days until I could get another pint of heavy cream. Could that be the problem? Not using fresh heavy cream?
Hi Karen, We're sorry you're having trouble. Here are a couple thoughts for you.
-A thick, golden brown, crusty layer on top (rather than a thin, dry skin) tells me that your oven was most likely too hot. Do you have a thermometer in there to be sure it heats to the right temperature?
-Did you cover the dish and refrigerate for 8 hours after cooling? This step helps to set the clotted cream and makes the layers easier to separate.
-When the cream comes out of the refrigerator (after heating overnight and then refrigerating for at least 8 hours) you will have three layers: a milky liquid on the bottom, thick cream fat in the middle, and a drier skin on top. The thick cream layer and the skin layer are your clotted cream. Mix these together and refrigerate. The liquid on the bottom is a result of the process and can be discarded or used like milk (in baking, etc).
Hopefully this helps!
A thin golden crystalline layer is quite normal for clotted cream in the U.K, though not a thick crust. It gives a wonderful flavour. I’d suggest trying the recipe again, but keep an eye on it every hour or so. If you don’t have an appropriate sized pot I’d suggest increasing the amount of cream. You don’t want your surface area: volume ratio to be too great. I’d suggest a good three inches of cream depth. Good luck.
Don’t forget a thin golden crust is a very good thing to have.
"After chilled, gently skim the thick layer of clotted cream from the surface, leaving the thinner liquid behind. ... The skin in fine, it will soften as it is mixed into the cream. Gently stir the clotted cream to create a smooth texture."
This wording is slightly confusing. When you say "the skin ... will soften as it is mixed into the cream" it sounds like you're ADDING the clotted cream to non-clotted cream and mixing it. But the instructions don't say that. If what you're supposed to do is skim the clotted cream, then simply stir it on its own to even out the texture and loosen it up, I would take off the words "as it is mixed into the cream."
You are correct MeS. When you make the clotted cream, you will notice a drier skin that forms on the top after going through the clotting process. After you skim off the thick layer of clotted cream, with the skin, and mix it all up, the skin will soften as it sets. You don't mix the thickened clotted cream into the thin, milky liquid. Enjoy!
Do you leave in the oven for less time if you only want to make a half quantity?
Hi Judy. If you're making half the quantity, just make sure you are using an appropriately sized dish where the cream has plenty of surface area. (I'd go closer to only 1 inch deep of cream in the dish.) You will want to leave it in the oven for the same amount of time for the cream to go through the clotting process. Enjoy!
I would love to make this! Finding cream that is not ultrapasteurized--impossible here in South Carolina.
I can imagine it might be difficult in some areas. We're in Wisconsin, so it's a bit easier.
If you have a place like Wholefoods around you may be able to get it there, or other 'natural' food or farm stores.
Good suggestion! Thanks!
Can you use the leftover milky liquid in the scones? Thanks!
That would be a great use for it! It can be used in baking just like you would milk. Enjoy!